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MONEY
WORRIES CAUSE 2 MILLION BRITS TO LOSE SEX DRIVE
AS MANY as 2 million British adults admit that worrying about
their finances has made them lose their sex drive, according to a
new study by insurance giant AXA. The company says that around 1.3
million women and around 732,000 men have lost their libido, and
sorting out their finances is the only way to rediscover it.
But who is most likely to lose their libido due to money worries? Of
those who have experienced money problems affecting their
relationships, over half are either married or cohabiting, 23% are
widowed or divorced and perhaps surprisingly 22% are single. And
maybe not so surprisingly, the study showed that women are more than
twice as likely to let financial problems affect their sex life than
men (64% female and 36% are male). In addition, 68% of those who
have lost their libido due to money worries are between 35 and 54
years of age.
Regionally, Northerners are most likely to lose their sex drive due
to money worries. A massive 25% of those who live in the North who
have had their personal relationships affected by money say that
their libido has dropped. In contrast, Southerners either have less
money problems, or if they do, they tend to prioritise sex over
money, as just 14% say that money worries have affected their
libido.
So how else do money problems affect our relationships? Of those
people who have experienced relationship problems because of their
finances:-
· 37% of people say they spend less quality time with their partners
· 50% have more arguments and a shorter temper when they are worried
about money · 26% of adults have admitted that money worries make them spend
less quality time with their children
Over 7 million adults also admitted to avoiding discussing their
finances with their partner, family or friends as it causes them
anxiety. 3.2 million of these people went as far as to say that they
always avoid financial discussions with those closest to them.
Even in the world of fictional soaps and TV dramas, money problems,
and the lack communication around these problems, have a big impact
on some of our favourite characters, their love-life and
livelihoods.
Top 5 Programme Money
/ Relationship Problem
1. Ian Beale, Eastenders Nearly all Ian Beale’s relationships
have been tainted by his greed and related money problems. After
ex-wife Cindy tried to kill him for his money he went bankrupt. But
even though he’s now getting back on track he still continues to lie
about money, for example, being secret bidder on the Queen Vic,
behind current partner’s back.
2. Sally and Kevin Webster, Coronation Street Sally keeps
spending beyond the family’s means and this causes friction with
husband Kevin. Rosie, the eldest daughter is at private school even
though they can’t really afford it. This strain is such that
recently Sally had an affair.
3. Patrick and Yolande, Eastenders Patrick is always sneaking
around behind Yolande’s back setting up Poker games. He spends too
much money in the betting shop and the Queen Vic pub. This puts a
real strain on his relationship with his hard working, God fearing
wife Yolande. It’s gotten so bad recently that Patrick even resorted
to having an affair with Pat Evans.
4. David Bishop, Neighbours David lost most of his family’s
wealth on a bad business decision and was too proud to tell his wife
when he lost his job. He even pretended to continue going to work
everyday. 5. The Cooper family, The OC Jimmy and Julie Cooper were
heading down the road to ruin and ended up splitting up. Gold
digging Julie then married super rich Caleb who, after finding out
he wanted a divorce, later tried to poison in order to get her hands
on his money.
Darrin Nightingale of AXA says:- “Our study has revealed that
this sensitive problem is quite widespread and a person with a
financial problem is likely to lean on his or her partner for
support and advice. When the original money problem breeds a second,
more personal, problem with their relationship, it can make things
much harder to deal with. With this study comes the recognition that
money worries, and a lack of financial understanding and know how,
are affecting both the mental and physical aspects of their personal
relationships.” |
DEATH
OF THE SURFER … BIRTH OF THE SUPERSITE
GOVERNMENT addresses shift in online behaviour with
www.direct.gov.uk, giving people in the North West
access to public services all in one place. New research
published by Directgov points to a new era in the use of the
internet that experts are calling the ‘Supersite’ phenomenon.
Despite 75.8million websites (and 6 billion pages) in existence,
people are no longer ‘surfing’ widely over the whole net,
with half of internet-users in the North West visiting just 6 or
less sites on a regular basis. Over 3/4s of the people
interviewed in the North West say the internet is indispensable to
their daily lives and 94% say they go online with a specific
destination in mind. People are now using the internet more smartly,
visiting a handful of destination websites that have emerged as ‘Supersites’
due to their importance to people’s lives.
So what makes a Supersite? When asked what factors were
most important in a website they visited regularly, it wasn’t
necessarily about being entertained or saving money, in fact the
majority of North West respondents said that it needed to be:-
- Trusted (57%)
- Tried and tested (57%)
- Familiar (55%)
- Reliable (51%)
The research goes on to suggest that using just 1 banking, shopping,
travel information and holiday website is enough for 1 person to
keep their life well-managed.
But the research also shows that there is space in people’s lives
for 1 more Supersite to help manage their government and
administrative affairs. 70% of respondents in the North West said
that they would welcome a website that gave them access to public
services all in 1 place.
As an integral part of its wider transformation of public services,
the government this week launches an awareness campaign for its own
Supersite – Directgov
www.direct.gov.uk.
Consumers in Liverpool can use the site for everything from renewing
their car tax or passport to finding out about local schools,
childminders and recycling.
Jim Murphy, Cabinet Office Minister with responsibility for
Directgov, said:- “If you can order your shopping, manage your
bank accounts and book cinema tickets online - why shouldn't you
expect the same convenience online from Government? A few clicks and
you're there - that's what people expect and demand from their
services today and Government is no exception. Directgov makes
it much easier for people to get to the public services they need by
joining up government to bring everything together all in one place.
It’s our response to the changing way that people want to access
information, communicate and deal with things online and on the
move. Renewing your car tax, learning about benefit entitlement,
finding out about training or checking your council’s recycling
facilities need not be complicated – it’s all there at
www.direct.gov.uk.”
Michael Nutley, Editor of New Media Age, says:- “The research
illustrates a major step change in the way we access information
online. We now spend much more time at far fewer sites and this has
led to the evolution of online superbrands – or ‘Supersites’.
In the North West the websites identified as being the most
invaluable to our lives included Ebay, BBC, Google, Yahoo and
Amazon. Increasingly people are able to make their lives easier via
the internet – now
www.direct.gov.uk joins
the ranks of ‘Supersites’ that are helping people to manage
their lives.”
“The overall strategy for Directgov is to deliver long-term
cost savings for the government, and therefore ultimately the tax
payer,” said Jim Murphy. “This will be easily achieved
by switching interaction with the government from existing resource
intensive channels, like face-to-face, call centres and printed
publications, to most cost efficient digital channels.”
A Directgov service is also available on Digital TV through Sky,
Telewest and ntl and via an i-mode pilot on O2.
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